"C.S. Lewis: A Mentor by Mail," a book talk and signing by David C. Downing

The Marion E. Wade Center and Wheaton College presents "C.S. Lewis: A Mentor by Mail," a book talk and signing by David C. Downing on Thursday, May 14, 2026, at 7:00 PM.

C.S. Lewis published 40 books in his lifetime, and yet he found time to answer hundreds of letters from complete strangers. He considered it a part of his Christian ministry to answer letters from his readers, including questions about theology, prayer, the Bible, and struggles with doubt. This lecture will include samples of his letters of advice and counsel. Join us afterward for a book signing of Dr. Downing's latest publication, C.S. Lewis: Letters on Living the Faith (2026).

David C. Downing (Ph.D. UCLA) was the Co-Director and Co-holder of the Marion E. Wade Chair in Christian Thought (with his wife Crystal Downing) of the Marion E. Wade Center from 2018 to 2024 at Wheaton College in Illinois. 

Downing has written four scholarly books on C.S. Lewis: Planets in Peril (1992), a critical study of the Ransom trilogy; The Most Reluctant Convert (2002), an examination of Lewis's journey to faith; Into the Wardrobe (2005), an in-depth overview of the Narnia Chronicles; Into the Region of Awe (2005), a study of how Lewis's wide reading in Christian mysticism enhanced his own faith and enriched his imaginative writing. 

Downing also provided a critical introduction and over 400 explanatory notes to the new edition of C.S. Lewis's The Pilgrim's Regress, originally published in 1933 and reissued by Eerdmans in the Wade Center Annotated Edition (2014). Downing has edited two best-selling collections of Lewis’s thoughts on reading and writing, The Reading Life (2019) and C.S. Lewis on Writing (and Writers) (2022), both published by HarperOne, and now C.S. Lewis: Letters on Living the Faith (2026). 

 Downing is also the author of Looking for the King: An Inklings Novel (2020), a historical novel in which two young Americans meet Lewis and Tolkien in Oxford in 1940. His blog may be found at cslewis.com. David and Crystal are now retired and live in Colorado.

This event is free and open to the public and will take place in Marion E. Wade Center, Room 130 Bakke Auditorium, located at 351 East Lincoln Avenue in Wheaton on the Northwest corner of campus at the intersection of Washington Street and Lincoln Avenue. For more information, contact the Wade Center at 630.752.5908 or wade@wheaton.edu.